


Sometimes Nocturnal Species Are Active During the Day

by SpicyGoddess



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, getting stuck in windows, match maker robin, no beta we die like men, park ranger au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-12
Updated: 2020-05-12
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:02:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,519
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24141763
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpicyGoddess/pseuds/SpicyGoddess
Summary: He stuck his hand out, with a scowl on his face." I'm Sanji, " he nearly sneered.He could have sworn he saw surprise on the others face for a split second before it matched his own annoyed expression. "Zoro." He simply stated, before sticking his hand out and giving Sanji a firm handshake.
Relationships: Roronoa Zoro/Vinsmoke Sanji
Comments: 2
Kudos: 64





	Sometimes Nocturnal Species Are Active During the Day

Zoro grunted as he heard his phone ring for the third time. Initially he had ignored it, assuming that it was a scam caller, then a particularly insistent scam caller- who probably wanted to buy his house, despite him clearly living in an apartment on the edge of town. Realizing this wasn't the case he reluctantly rolled himself over, picking up the phone, and noting the caller ID. 

His brow furrowed as his thumb slammed the answer.

“What.” He grumbled out, making it clear that he was more than displeased with getting called at 11 A.M.

“Zoro! Thank goodness you picked up,” his manager rambled out. “Look, I know that you just got off a few hours ago but….Robin called in sick today and it’s one of our busiest weekends and I really need you to come in to cover for her."

Zoro groaned, not carrying that his boss could hear his clear displeasure with the situation. He knew they understood so he wasn’t worried about his vocalization reflecting poorly on him.

“I thought you had enough people working during the day that missing one wouldn’t be that big of a deal.” He grumbled out, moving to viciously wipe the sleep out of his eyes, already knowing that he was about to cover for Robin. 

They sighed, “Normally that would be the case, but you know how holiday weekends get. Besides Robin's the best interpreter we have.” Zoro let out an amused noise at that, pleased that everyone was capable of recognizing that basic fact. “I know this is probably throwing a wrench in your schedule but if you come in today then you won’t have to work tonight- and I’ll see what I can do about getting you a few extra days off.” 

Zoro figured that was fair compensation. He sighed as he pushed his covers off himself and stood. “Wouldn’t it be better to have me working night this weekend? People tend to forget basic rules on holidays."

He heard a defeated sigh from the other end of the line “Yes it would, but we tend to have fewer visitors-” 

“Legal ones you mean. ” Zoro interrupted.

He heard a sigh “fewer legal visitors yes at night. It’s more beneficial if you're here during the day since you are certified and all that. Besides Kuina can more than handle doing night without you how did she put it… 'always being in her way' ”

Zoro snorted at that, but didn't comment or disagree, knowing that his ass would be kicked into next week if he even thought about suggesting Kuina was incompetent.

He sighed in defeat instead- “When do you need me by?” 

“As soon as possible.”

He glanced at the clock that read 11:05 and bright red numbers. He remembered that he had skipped a shower when he got home that morning and that he should take one since soon he'd be interacting with the general public. It took 45 minutes to get to the visitor center usually, but he assumed it would take an hour today with the extra traffic. He decided 25 minutes would be enough for him to get ready. "I can be there at 12:30” 

“Alright, thank you so much, Zoro- oh and text Robbin asking for her notes.”

“Yeah alright, bye.” He hung up without waiting for a reply.

He sent Robin a text before getting ready for what probably would be a long day explaining aspects of the park and answering questions. He cringed inwardly hearing the clear as day "what time is the 4:30 ferry" - the very question that made him decide to stop working during the day and instead transfer fully to night. 

It was a decision he didn't regret as he quickly discovered he genuinely enjoyed the night more despite having to deal with people attempting to steal from the park or camping out illegal. He found it much more exciting than giving presentations to the public and answering questions- even though he did find the information interesting and thrilling to share. Working more as a law enforcer he found just fit him better. 

He blinked the rest of the sleep out of his eyes as he shoved the rest of his toast in his mouth and poured the remainder of the coffee pot into his thermos, glancing at the top corner of his phone to read the time as he finished up reading the document Robin had sent him. It was loosely structured and she had added some suggestions specific to him. He grinned as he climbed into his truck. 

"Do something with swords added into why it is important to remember the past. It'll probably help kids remember - and help you get back at the boss for calling you in today." - Robin

He had an hour long ride to figure out exactly how much he could get away with on the sword front. He thought wielding three at once would be pushing it- but pushing limits was one of his favorite activities.  
\---------  
Sanji seethed as he watched the green haired man toss a third sword in the air and sheathed it after a fancy flurry of movement- much to his audience's delight. 

How dare this seaweed growing bastard come in and replace Robin- and how dare these people act as though he were the most amazing person in the entire park? Clearly they had never seen Robin give a talk she poured her heart and soul into- or Nami's talks that she gave clear as day despite the weather attempting to drown out her voice. No, instead of appreciating the two who had worked for months-maybe even years to perfect their craft (Sanji wasn't sure, only getting a position at this park 4 months ago--but he was certain they toiled for vast amounts of time to perfect their art), they instead gave their full attention and appreciation to some mosshead who had never set foot in the visitor center before. 

"- this concludes our program, if you have any questions please feel free to stick around and ask. If not I hope everyone enjoys their day here at the park." 

Sanji smirked as he watched most of the crowd disperse- usually Robin had a ton of questions from people wanting to know more, but it seemed this man didn't interest people enough. That was completely fine in Sanji's book. 

Still he frowned as he watched the man talk to a few children and parents. That was a few too many for a man who had just started. 

He shifted his attention away- intent on ignoring the man. And he succeeded until he ran into the boss talking to him in the back room. 

"Zoro, I know that the three sword thing was kind of a hit, but do you think you can tone it down to just one, at least for the hikes? I don't need parents accusing me of endangering kids or whatever." 

Sanji could hear the amusement in the other man’s- Zoro’s?- voice. 

"Yeah alright, just for the hikes though. Is that the only other thing you need me to do today?" 

A pause as the boss thought about. "Yeah, that's it- if you want you can stay until Kuina gets in, but you don't have to go patrol or whatever." 

"I can do that, I just need to make sure that no one breaks into the visitor center then?" 

"Yup, or go help if one if the campsites needs it." 

"Alright."

Sanji chose to make his presence known then by walking to where his stuff was, giving a nod to the two of them once he reached a polite distance. 

"Sanji! I'm glad you're here! I want to introduce you to Zoro, he's covering for Robin today! He's going to be doing guided hikes at the same time as you, so I figured you better meet before you run into each other out there." 

Sanji nodded vaguely at this--so Robin needed to be covered today? He'd text her asking about her health later, but for now he ought to meet the moss head. 

He stuck his hand out, with a scowl on his face." I'm Sanji, " he nearly sneered. 

He could have sworn he saw surprise on the others face for a split second before it matched his own annoyed expression. "Zoro." He simply stated, before sticking his hand out and giving Sanji a firm handshake.

“A pleasure, Zoro.” he said, though Zoro could hear a taunt in his tone. Whatever, now wasn’t the time for pettiness over…

Zoro actually wasn’t sure why Sanji was acting hostile towards him. As far as he was aware he had never seen the other man in his life. Whatever though, if the other ranger wanted to be petty over something Zoro was more than happy to match him.

“Heard you were covering hikes, see you out there, marimo.” 

Zoro blinked twice at the sudden nickname, and the taunting way it was said. He sent a glare to the other but by then his back was turned. Fine, whatever. He could manage a day or three of this bullshit.

Though part of him hoped Robin would recover so he didn’t have to deal with the passive aggressiveness of a...an actually rather nice looking blonde.  
\-----  
"If you look closely you might spot algae that's native to this region- wait, that's just the other guide." 

Zoro gave Sanji a hard look as he approached. He didn’t really understand why the other felt the need to insult him, especially in front of others...but if he wanted to play that game then so be it. He walked forward another few steps, seeming as though he wasn’t going to react to the insult. Then he stopped, and turned to his group, an action they had become familiar with. Side conversations ceased and their focus centered in on him as he began speaking, "There are many bugs that can be found here in the forest, in fact if you look closely you may be able to find one on the face of the park's pride and joy, Sanji." 

He stated it cheerfully-no hint of sarcasm at any point. It sounded like playful banter between long time coworkers, but Sanji swore he could see disdain in his eyes as he spoke. 

A few laughs came from Zoro’s group, enough to match the number that had come from Sanji’s when he chose to insult the others' hair.

‘Evenly matched’ Zoro thought, as he began walking again, feeling Sanji’s glare at the back of his head. He smiled to himself, considering that a small win in whatever battle Sanji had decided to drag him into.  
\----  
Zoro ran a hand through his hair as he glanced at the clock. 9:20. Kuina would be here soon, then he could go home and sleep the day off, before doing it all over again.

He sighed, standing from the chair in his small office before pacing around the room twice, then he grabbed the keys to the building. He decided to take a small walk to help keep him alert. He liked his job, don't get him wrong, but the days always left him drained from the interactions. That was part of the reason he decided to do nights in the first place.

He realized nights had the advantage of not having passive aggressive coworkers either. At least he and Kuina knew what their deal was. That blonde guy...Zoro wasn’t sure what he thought of him. Zoro would be the first to admit that he was handsome, and he did quite like the way the man seemed to speak his mind and give back as good as he got.He just wished he knew why the man suddenly seemed to have a problem with him for no reason other than existing. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair again. At least he didn’t have to deal with the other for another...He checked the clock. 9:25. 

10 hours, 35 minutes.What a relief. 

He was getting ready to head outside when he heard something. He froze where he was, wondering what the hell it was he just heard. Then he heard it again. The scrape of a window against a sill, then a muffled curse. 

His hand moved to the sword at his waist- wait fuck a sword? He was supposed to put those in the storage room.

His hand grasped the hilt. Oh well, he knew they were real, and he knew he had the skills to wield them. Management wouldn’t be pleased if he actually had to use them and likely get them messy in the process, but they would have to do for now. 

He walked quietly to where he had heard the sound- no use in scaring his intruder off. He drew the sword as he rounded the last corner to where the sound had come from. 

Loudly he announced “Stop. Trespassing the vi-” His words died as he took in the scene in front of him, then what was going to be an authoritative command instead transferred into a snort of amusement. 

“Don’t you fucking laugh.” 

To Zoro’s credit he didn’t beyond his initial snort, but a small smug smile on his face and glint of amusement in his eyes told Sanji that he was laughing inside, the bastard. 

“I said don’t laugh!” Sanji repeated, face going bright read. 

“I’m not laughing, blondie.” Oh, but the amusement was there, even in his tone of voice. “What the hell are you doing in the window?”

Sanji glared at him for a minute, but only got a raised eyebrow in response. He muttered something, too quiet for Zoro to understand.

“Sorry, can you repeat that so I can actually hear it, swirly.”

Sanji glared at him. “I forgot the house key in my locker, and the doors were locked.”

The amusement seemed to amplify. “So breaking into the window was the only logical response?”

Sanji glared harder, “I don’t exactly have a key to this place. Maybe you would have figured that out if your brain wasn’t full of moss.”

Despite the insult Zoro still looked beyond amused. “Yeah I guess you wouldn’t.” Zoro paused, “I guess we better get you out of that window though.”

“It’s fine.” Sanji almost growled. “I’m not stuck. I don’t need your help.”

Zoro shrugged at this, amusement suddenly gone, at least to Sanji. “Alright then, suit yourself. Yell if you change your mind,” and with that Zoro left before Sanji could get another word out. 

Sanji cursed, unbelieving that he’d just leave him like that. Though Sanji supposed he insisted. That was fine, he could get out of this himself without the others' help.

Five minutes later Sanji gave up, letting his body sag where it was halfway through the window.

Then he heard something behind him. He snarled, assuming that it was an animal, and he was not about to let an animal investigate him. He kicked out, but his leg was caught, then he made out the voice of the only other person he knew to be on the property. Fuck.

“Woah relax.” Zoro said, surprised by the kicks that Sanji still tried to give. “Seriously Sanji, I’m just going to pull you out. It’s easier to come out the way you came in, rather than just forcing your way through.”

Sanji’s eyes narrowed. Sounded like he knew from experience.  
“Fine.” He ground out, loud enough for the other to hear. 

“Alright, I’m going to start pulling you out. Be ready to catch yourself.” 

Sanji caught himself on the ground a minute later, flipping himself around to glare at Zoro. “Thanks,” his tone made it sound like it was physical torture to be thanking the other man for his help. “But I could have handled that myself.”

Zoro’s face fell. Of course he was still going to be passive aggressive about this. Apparently getting help was too much for the blondes pride. Zoro waved his hand in the air, dismissing the others thanks. “Yeah whatever, let's just go get your keys.” Without waiting for a response he turned and made his way back into the building. After a moment he heard steps follow behind him.

Zoro stuck the key into the front door, unlocking it. Behind him he heard a scoff. He didn’t ask what it was about, as he decided that if Sanji had something to say he would just come out and say it unprompted. 

And Sanji did. “Can’t believe they’d trust a ranger with the key on the first day.” 

Zoro glanced at him confused. “What are you talking about?” 

It was Sanji’s turn to look confused. “Your first day. Today.”

Zoro’s eyebrows furrowed further in confusion.

“I’ve never seen you before today.” Sanji emphasized, agitated at the other's confusion.

Zoro paused then snorted. “You do realize interpreters aren't the only ranger types right?”

Sanji rolled his eyes, “Of course I know that.” Then silence as Zoro led him to the common area, where he figured Sanji’s key would be. They were sitting on the table, clear as day. Zoro wondered why the other’s house keys were separated from the rest of his keys. How odd.

Sanji made to pick them up and then froze as he made a realization. “You. You don’t normally interpret.” He spoke slowly, giving Zoro a look out of the corner of his eyes.

Zoro leveled him with an unamused look. Realization suddenly appeared on the other's face.

“Law enforcement?” he asked, realizing that his assumption from earlier, and with it his passive aggressiveness had been misplaced. Only slightly though because this asshole replaced Robin when he wasn’t even a real interpreter. Sure he was a ranger and had maybe more experience than Sanji had given him credit for, but still his expertise was different and he had just replaced Robin like it was nothing.

Zoro nodded, not realizing Sanji’s internal conflict. “Deputized and everything. Also NAI certified if you're worried about me not being qualified for working with the public too.”

Fuck, so maybe he did have the same skills as Robin, if not more. But he was still a dumb marimo. Before he could say anything a voice rang out. 

“Zoro!”

Zoro nodded to Sanji, “That’s my que to leave. Try not to break into anymore buildings.” 

With that the other turned and left. Sanji quickly put his key in his pocket and made to leave, already checking again to see if it really was in his pocket.

Then suddenly his voice echoed along the walls as Zoro called out to the person who had entered the building. “By the way there’s company! Coworker forgot his keys, got stuck in a window trying to get them, but he’s fine now. On his way out I think!”

Sanji flushed as he heard laughter that wasn’t that of a green haired man. 

He’d get him back for it.  
\-----  
Sanji did not end up getting the chance to get the other back for what happened the previous night, as the next two days passed in a blurr. He managed to exchange a few insults with the man, but nothing more, much to his own disappointment. He had embarrassed him! In front of a girl no less! He had to do something as revenge!

After the weekend passed, he didn’t see the mop of green hair again. Robin returned that wednesday, and he was beyond pleased to see her. He ensured she was alright, that she didn’t get sick again, and fawned over her in general, but still things felt wrong. A certain thorn in his side was missing. 

By Friday he realized he was attached and Robin seemed to realize something was up, yet she refrained from saying anything. He swore she’d give him a mischievous look every now and again though. 

Saturday he woke up to a text that was sent to him from an unknown number at...4 a.m.? What the fuck, who would do that?

‘Hey, is this Sanji? It’s Zoro from work, I saw the paper you left on my desk and figured I’d text you sooner rather than later.’

What the fuck? What paper, he had never left a paper. Then he remembered. Fuck, Robin, he saw her leaving one of the offices earlier that afternoon and she had given him a knowing look. He didn’t understand at the time what it had meant but now...

‘Hi Zoro. Sorry to disappoint you but that wasn’t me who left the paper.’

He got a response sooner than he thought he would.

‘Robin?’ He was smart for having moss for brains.

‘Yeah’

‘Look, this is going to sound odd, but what time do you get off work?’

Sanji’s eyes squinted. He knew what was up, asking that wasn’t exactly subtle. He responded with a simple 

‘5:00 today, I’ll text if that changes.’ Then he rolled out of bed and got dressed.

He wasn’t surprised when at 5:00 he found Zoro waiting for him.

**Author's Note:**

> This was going to be a lot longer, but I got lazy. Alas!
> 
> One of the things that got cut that Youkoartemis (https://archiveofourown.org/users/Youkoartemis/pseuds/Youkoartemis) came up with was Zoro's dog Chopper who was actually a reindeer (which he has legally!) and I think it's really important and needs to be shared even though it's never mentioned.
> 
> Finally: idk if what Zoro says about getting out of windows is true or not so don't try it at home


End file.
